Varyag

The fully armed Russian warship Varyag left San Francisco earlier this morning. The warship was the first Russian surface warship to visit San Francisco in 147 years and was sent here in the “spirit of friendship,” according to Russian Rear Admiral Vladimir Kastonov.

The warship’s visit coincided with Russian President Dmitry Medvedv’s visit this past week to Silicon Valley where he met with a number of technology companies and executives.

Ships like the Varyag are known as “the killer of aircraft carriers” as they can launch very large explosives or tactical nuclear warheads up to 300 miles away. The ship has sixteen distinctive missiles in four pairs on both sides of the ship.